PHILIPPINES
UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
THIRD CYCLE UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW
27TH SESSION

9 AM to 12:30 PM, Monday, 08 May 2017
Room XX, Palais des Nations

OPENING STATEMENT
By SENATOR ALAN PETER S. CAYETANO

Filipinos are a very spiritual people. Regardless of our personal spiritual beliefs, we believe that man was created in the image of GOD and that there can be no compromise on human rights and dignity of human life.

This is enshrined in the first paragraph of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) which reads –

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.

We also believe in accountability, in the principle that whatever we sow we shall reap.

These are some of the reasons why we are here today - to strengthen the UN Human Rights Council’s (UNHRC) mechanisms, through our participation, our showcasing of the Philippines’ achievements in the field of human rights, by answering your questions to the best of our ability, by learning from your experiences, and through new media, by bringing human rights closer to all Filipinos and all people around the world.

Mr. President, your Excellencies, friends of the Filipino people, magandang umaga po. Good morning. It is an honor for the Philippine Delegation to present the Philippines’ Third Cycle Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Report.

It is the first time that the Philippines is represented by both the executive and the legislative branches of government in presenting the UPR report. Hopefully one day, the judiciary will also be represented, as many human rights issues and challenges, like the right to speedy and fair trial, legal issues on reproductive health, fall under the ambit of the Philippine Judiciary.

This clearly shows the Philippines’ strong and unwavering commitment towards the UPR. It shows how we value this significant innovation of the UNRC wherein a country submits itself to a periodic review of its human rights record, based on equal treatment for all countries. We deeply appreciate that the UPR includes the sharing of the best human rights practices around the world, giving us the opportunity to learn from each other, while understanding that not one country has the monopoly of both human rights challenges and human rights best practices.

We greatly appreciate the 109 countries, which have registered in the speakers’ list after the presentation of the Philippines’ UPR Report.

Thank you for caring for the Filipino people.

Your Excellencies,

President Duterte took the helm of the Philippine government on the demand of our people for real change. Filipinos long for the rule of law, for equality, for respect of human rights of all

Filipinos regardless of faith, social status (whether rich or poor), sexual orientation, age, disabilities, ethnicity, or whether they are from urban or rural areas.

Our report includes our progress since our last review in May 2012. But because we are only allowed 10,700 words, it does not detail the present challenges of Filipinos in the Philippines and all around the world. Challenges due to crime, prohibited drugs and corruption. Poverty, lack of access to quality health services, education, housing and other social services are so real to our people that 10 million Filipinos have been forced to look for employment outside the Philippines. Our Overseas Filipino Workers sacrifice for what is most important to them in this world --their families.

Our report likewise does not detail how resilient we are as a people after major natural disasters hit the country and how we struggle with elite democracy wherein only a few families control most of the Philippine economy, or how drugs and crime have become a fact of life.

The following close circuit television (CCTV) videos and newspaper clippings will provide a glimpse of what has become part of the normal lives of Filipinos before President Duterte took office.

The new administration is committed to real change, to institute reforms and to protect the human rights of all Filipinos. The new administration continues to be committed to the obligations accompanying the various international treaties ratified in the previous years. Hence, the Duterte administration has vowed to integrate the human rights agenda in its development initiatives to protect all, especially the most vulnerable sectors, including but not limited to, the indigenous people, children, women, migrant workers, elderly, domestic workers, persons with disabilities, farmers, laborers and members of the LGBT community.

Guided by its Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022, it adopts a culture-sensitive perspective, gender-sensitive paradigm, and human rights-based approach in public service.

In keeping with the State’s duty to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedom, the people’s campaign against illegal drugs is pursued to preserve the lives of the Filipino people and prevent the country from turning into a Narco-State. At all times, the Duterte administration seeks to uphold the rule of law. In fact, President Duterte has a policy of zero tolerance for abuse by law enforcers.

The government adopts a holistic and balanced approach to address the problems on criminality and illegal drugs. In addition to the strengthening of law enforcement and judicial mechanisms, the government also encourages private sector participation to ensure a more effective and sustainable rehabilitation and reintegration programs for the surrendering drug users.

Mr. President,

Security and human rights are not incompatible. In fact, without human security, humans are vulnerable to all kinds of abuses. Human rights is not only about making people feel safe, but is actually about making people safe.

Illegal drugs can easily destroy a whole generation. The Philippines has a very young population.

It is projected that in 2017, we will have 32,700,000 Filipinos age 14 and below or 31% of our population. Our young people are the most vulnerable to temptation and evils of prohibited drugs.

Unless we recognize the relationship of illegal drugs, especially crystal Meth or Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, to violent crimes and poverty, we will not understand the

Philippine situation.

Let me address the elephant in the room, the Philippine government campaign on illegal drugs.

The internet and social media have changed, and continue to change, the world. Now suddenly, anyone, anywhere in the world can have access to information and the ability to communicate both with his or her peers and his or her leaders. Traditional media is no longer the only source of news and information.

Allow me to take this opportunity to present to you true facts and real numbers instead of alternative facts which, unfortunately, have been spread by critics of the Duterte administration, widely quoted by some Philippine media outlets, then used, accepted and repeated by some in the western media.

First. Killings in the Philippines in the previous administrations varied from a low of 11,000 to a high of 16,000 per year. Why wasn’t this reported? Why is there no apples to apples comparison between the figures of past and present administrations? Because some of the critics of the Duterte Administration, including our very own Commission on Human Rights (CHR), a senator and some local media changed the definition of extrajudicial killings (EJK) therefore deceiving the public and foreign media into believing that there is a sudden wave of state-sponsored extrajudicial killings in the Philippines.

Administrative Order (A.O.) 35 signed by then President Benigno Aquino III defined EJKs as the killing of the members or advocates of cause-oriented organizations like labor, environment or media activists resulting in very low number of supposed EJKs in the past administration.

However, for the current administration, a different definition is being used. EJK now refers to any death outside of those caused by natural causes, accidents or those ordered by the courts.

Make no mistake, any death or killing is one too much. However, there is a deliberate attempt to include all homicides as EJKs or killings related to the campaign against criminality and illegal drugs, and that these are state-sponsored, which is simply not true.

Second. 1.266 million pushers and users have surrendered. They are being rehabilitated and given a second chance. Again, in reports on the Philippines’ anti-illegal drug campaign, this is never emphasized. In fact, it is rarely included.

Third. In the 6-year period prior to the Duterte administration, 93,197 drug operations were conducted. Now, barely 10 months into the Duterte administration, a total of 53,503 anti-illegal drug operations have been conducted.

Fourth. 64,917 drug personalities have been arrested. Arrested your Excellencies not killed.

Fifth. 9,432 total homicide cases, 2,692 deaths resulting from presumed legitimate law enforcement operations. Why are there more deaths due to police operations? Because law enforcers are now conducting operations every day and the ratio of those who surrender and those who violently resist is consistent. Therefore, more operations lead to more arrest, more surrenderees and, unfortunately, more who resist violently thus resulting in more deaths.

Why presumed legitimate law enforcement operations? Because any death resulting from law enforcement operations is presumed legitimate under the law, although it is automatically subject of investigation.

Some have been giving warnings of a possible strong man rule. Yet, these critics conveniently forget to mention that the Duterte administration has increased to almost double, the budget of one of its most outspoken critic, the CHR from 439 million pesos [US $8 million] to 724 million pesos [or US $14 million], has institutionalized the Freedom of Information through an

Executive Order, and put up a direct line, 8888, to the Office of the President where citizens may complain of abuses by any government official or employee.

We would like to reiterate paragraphs 164 and 165 of the Philippine report.

164. To date, the [Government of the Philippines] (GPH) is in the process of drafting its Philippine Human Rights Action Plan for the next five years. As our President himself expressed during his first State of the Nation Address in July 2016, “there can never be real, tangible, and felt development without making our people feel secure.” The Philippines shall implement a rights-based approach to development and governance, as GPH improves our people’s welfare. Human rights must work to uplift human dignity.

165. GPH is committed to an open, inclusive, constructive, and transparent review before the UPR working group, and continues to support the UPR process and the UN human rights system. GPH will engage relevant stakeholders in deciding which recommendations to accept, therefore ensuring a successful implementation against the backdrop of the present national challenges the GPH is facing.

Again, the UPR of the UNHRC is a unique and effective process and mechanism. One of the reasons it is very effective is the success of the UNHRC in insulating the UPR process from being politicized. However, the UPR is not the only mechanism of the UN that deals with human rights. The system of sending special rapporteurs has oftentimes been effective. But sometimes, this can create more harm than good, especially when human rights is politicized. Dialogue is effective when there is mutual trust and respect and the aim is constructive engagement. As a general rule, engagement should not be adversarial.

There is a generally accepted principle in law that those who come to court must come with clean hands. Therefore, it is essential that the rapporteurs are not only factual, fair and just, but must also appear to be factual, fair and just.

As stated in the paragraph 158 of the Philippine report.

158. GPH fully supports the Special Procedures process of the Human Rights Council, and will extend invitations to the Special Rapporteurs at the most appropriate time, provided they prove their openness, independence, and willingness to engage the Philippine government in a constructive dialogue.

In closing, the Philippine Government under President Duterte is committed to real change, to peace and development and to addressing the problems of poverty and inequality.

Understanding where the Philippines is coming from is essential to our discussions in improving the human rights situation in our country - from decades long communist rebellion, centuries long unrest and rebellion in the south, inequality brought about by social injustices, partly caused by corruption and the few political and economic elites controlling most of the Philippine economy, to the powerful criminal and drug syndicates who act with impunity.

We are addressing all of these. Peace talks, reforms to make our system of taxation more progressive and our economy more inclusive are all underway, while we struggle at the same time to address the problems of drugs, crime and corruption.

But, there are other challenges to human rights like terrorism. Terrorism is a national and regional threat. As the world has painfully learned, terrorism has no boundaries and has no notion of human rights. President Duterte and his administration are exerting all efforts to address this threat and to bridge differences across our region so that regional peace, stability and sustainable development can cease being a dream and become a reality.

At this time, allow the Philippine delegation to thank our ASEAN brothers and sisters and the many ASEAN partners who are working with us for a drug-free and terrorism-free region and for a region of peace, stability and sustainable development.

We need everyone’s help to make a better world.

We are committed to Change.

We are committed to the rule of Law.

We are committed to upholding human rights.

GOD Bless Us with world peace, prosperity, stability and sustainable development.